Fishing rod holder



July 12, 1960 T. w. couL'rER FISHING ROD HOLDER 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug. 28, 1958 Fiq. 1

Fig.3

Fla/2 INVENTOR. fHoMAs M4 (aura/P BY 2 W 5 A TTOEUEY July 12, 1960 r. w. COULTER FISHING ROD HOLDER 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 28, 1958 F'IQHA INVENTOR. THOMAS W. 604/4752 ATTORNEY I, i This invention relate lfishing rod holder." a As is well known in the art; many 'clevices jhave been developed for holding a fishing 'rod and autorn cally pivoting the fishing rod when the {outer end thereof is pulled by a fish biting bait on the end of a line extending from the fishing rod. Heretofore, however, suchfishing rod holders have either been so delicately constructed that they have been easily damaged by normal'handlihg and storage, or they have been too expensive, for commenciaTuse.

'pivotally supported holding member having a'spr'ing cpl;-

"tially any'size or type of fish. I

A further objectof this invent-ion is to provide a'fishing i 2,944,361 FISHING ROD HOLDER Thomas w. Coulter, 1506 NW. 16th St.,

Oklahoma City, Okla.

as macawo as improved Prior fishing rodiholder's almost "'all-'use 11a nected thereto tending to pivot the holding'inember'in one direction, and a triggermeclian ism holding the member against movement by the spring until the mechahism tripped by afish as indicated above. The trigger mechain'isms lie'retofore used are difiicult to engage orf fcock,

and havea fixedsensitivity. Inptherwords, if the prior trigger mechanisms are manufactured in such a manner as to. be too'non-sensitive, the fisherman must do substantial f bending and re-shaping. of. the trigger mechanism to obtain an operative fishing rod holden 'Als o, prior' fishing rod holders: are capable of providing pnlyone type of action for alfishing rod'held thereby; suchthat the fishingrod holders are actu ally useful :forfcatching only alimited size range or a limited numberof types offish.

The present invention contemplatesfa sturdily constructedfishing rod holder Whichmay be usedto catch a Wide variety of types of fish, as Well as a substantial size range of fish. Thepresent holderfutilizesa fishing rod holding member in the form of a tube,such that the handle portion of the fishing rod may be easily secured.

in the holder and the fishing rod will be positively actuated by a pivoting movement of the tube. The tube may be cocked or held against pivotal. movement in either of two different Ways, each of which provides a substantial difierent reaction for a fishing rod in the holder when the tube is released for pivoting movement. In other words, one cocking mechanism provides a relatively smooth reaction or pivoting movement for the fishing rod, such as required with smaller fish; Whereas, the other cocking mechanism provides a more violent reaction or pivoting movement for the fishing rod, such as would be desirable with larger fish. The trigger mechanism used with the more violent reacting operation may be easily adjusted by the fisherman, without the use of any special tools, to provide the desired sensitivity.

An important object of 'this invention is to provide a fishing rod holder which will notbe damaged by normal handling and storage.

Another object of this invention is to provide a fishing Q; asses rod holder whereiii the trigger mechanism may be ad- I justed to theidesired sensitivity in a minimumof time and without the use ofany special tools.

Another object of this invention is to provide a fishing rod holder which may be used in two different ways to provide two differenttypes of actions when the fishing rod holder is tripped.

A still further object of this invention is to provide a fishing rod holder having a long service life, which may in conjunction with theaccornpanying drawings which illustrate: my invention. Y

In the; drawingsz;

. I Figure is a side elevational view of a fishing rod holder -construct'ed in'accordance-with this invention and illustrating operation of the holder.

Figure 2 is a front elevational view of the holder shown in Fig. l, with the fishing rodremoved.

=1 1 Figure 3'is a perspective view of a'trigger mechanism constructed; in accordance withthis invention, with a ;portion of the trigger being broken awayqto illustrate f-de tails of'construction.

fif Figure 4 is a side elevational view of a fishing rod holder constructed in accordance with this invention illustrating anothertype of operation for the holder.

Figure 5 is arear elevational view of a portion of the holder shown inFigs. 1 and 4 to illustrate the anchorin means for the lower end of the spring. I 1 7, Referring to the drawings in detail, and-particularly Figs. 1 and 2, reference character 6 designates a support a member orifrarne having a front or leading edge 8 and a rear edge 10. The support member 6 is preferably 7 formed out of a flat bar bent lengthwise substantially. into the form ofan inverted U to provide horizontally spaced leg members 12 and 14, as illustrated in Fig. 2, which extend substantially vertically when the holder is supported in operating position. The lower ends of the leg members 12 and '14 of the frame 6 are suitably secured by bolts 16 to a stanchion or leg 18 having a lower pointed end 20. The lower pointed end 20 of the stanchion or leg .18 is provided-to facilitate insertion of the stanchion 18 into the ground adjacent a body of water to support the holder in a substantially vertical position as indicated in the drawings.

' A tube 22 is pivotally supported at about its center between the leg members 12 and 14 of the support member 6 by a novel connection. A bar or shaft 24 having a square cross section is rigidly secured transversely across the central portion of the tube 22in any suitable manner, as by welding the shaft 24to the tube 22. The shaft 24 extends'through apertures 26 formed transversely through the leg members 12 and 14. The apertures 26 are horizontally aligned and are of a size to slidingly receive the opposite end portions of the shaft 24, such that the shaft 24 may be turned in the ap'erturesi25to pivot the tube 22 in a vertical plane. It will also be noted in Fig. 1 that a square or rectangularly-shaped slot 28 is formed in each of the members '12 and 14 in communication with the upper portion of the respective aperture 26. Each slot 28 is of a size to slidingly receive, the respective end portion of the shaft rodhold'er which may be used to hold substantially Iany size or design of fishing rod.

to catch *substanfromthe vertical center line of the respective aperture 2 6 toward rthe' rear edge 10 0f the support membefi 6,

sucl1 "tha't the forward end SO-of'the tube 22will-be raised when the shaft'24' extends'through and is heldin' 2.4 and prevent a turning movement of the shaft 24 when the shaft is extended through the slots 28. It will also be vnotedthat each slot 28 extends at an acute angle dul -12,19 0.

"* the slo'ts28, as will be more fully hereinafter set forth.

"*A'helical' tension spring 32 is anchored at'its upper end to the rear end 34 of the tube 22 in any suitable manner,

, such as by extending the upper end portion of the. spring -'32 thrOugh a Y complementary aperture (not shown) formed in therear end portion 34 of the tube 22. The

lower end of the spring 32 is anchored by a bracket 36 e'which is secured to the stanchion 18 by a wingnut 38-. The wing nut 38 extends through a vertical slot 40 #(Fig. 5) in the bracket 36 and is suitably threaded into the stanchion 18, such that the bracket 36 may be adjusted-vertically on the stanchion 18 to vary the tension of the spring 32.

"The-forward end 30 of the tube 22 is-provided with a downwardly extending flange 42 on each side thereof, witheach fiange42 having an aperture 44 therein. The apertures 44 arehorizontally aligned to receive theend portions of a stiff wire-46 forming an actuating lever for a trigger mechanism generally designated by reference character 48. 7 As shown most clearly in-Fig. 3, the trigger '48. comprises a tubular housing 50 which is pref- :erably bent lengthwise substantially on the e are of a circle and having apertures 52 in the opposite sides thereof to receive the end portions 54 of the wire 46.

It will be observed that the wire 46 is bent somewhat in -the form of a U and extends into the housing 50 a substantial distance below the apertures 52.' Therefore, when the end portions 54 of the wire 46 are supported on a horizontal axis, a force imposed on the outer portion of the wire 46 will pivot the housing 50. In other words, -=the housing 50 and wire 46 act as a bell crank to provide movement of the housing 50 upon movement of the wire 46 It It will also be noted that the lower portions 56 of the wire 46 extendinginto the housing-5t to below the apertures 52 are bent to extend adjacent-the opposite sides of the housing when the end p0rtions'54 pro- .nztrude through the apertures 52. Therefore, the end :.port-ions 54 of the wire 46 may be moved inwardlyinto ;the1 housing 50 by pressing inwardly on-the opposite =.-=reaches'-of the wire 46 for a simple removal and replacerment of'the trigger mechanism 48 on the tube 22. As previously. noted, the end portions 54 of the wire 46 extend through the apertures 44 in the flanges 42 to pivotally -.-secure the trigger mechanism 48 to the forward end 30 'ofethe tube 22.

. pair of flanges or arms 58 are formed on the lower rend. portion of the housing 50 of the trigger mechanism s '48 -andextend generally forward from the housing 50 to {form a seat 5 on the forward side of the housing 50. :Az roller 60 is supported between the arms 58 by means 50 of a shaft 62 extending through complementary apertures in xthe arms .58. It will be observed that the seat 59 ;=,;,extends transversely across the housing 50 and that the :rol-ler 6t). effectively forms the forward edge of the seat, with the front of the housing 50 forming the rear edge of the seat.

set screw 64. is threaded through the lower portion ;,:ofzthe housing 56 to extend into the seat 59 at a level substantially even with the top surface of the roller 60. z-iThe' set screw- 64-nand rollercooperate to straddle a 60 strigger pin 66 secured in the outer end of an arm 68 as .n'llustrated in Figs. 1 and 2..

. ":The arm68 is preferably formed out of two bars tsuitably secured by bolts70 at their rear ends to the :2 upper :end of the stanchion 18, such that the arm 68 65 will extend. forward and slightly upward from the sup- ",port 6in a fixed position. The pin 66 is secured-in the outer: end of the arm 68 in any suitable manner to ex- :ztend horizontally and be engaged by the trigger mecha- ::nism-:48 .as illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2.

v.{The tube .22 is of a size to receive'the handle. portion -72-of a fishing rod 74 to support the rod in .the forward jendportion 30-of the tube 22. It should be noted that .t.. s inc e,the member 22 is in the form of a tube, substantially ...any.fsize ofcommercial rod 74 may be inserted in the 75 -2,944.,ss1 p I f forward end portion 36 of the tube 22 to provide adequate support for afishing rod. When a castingtype'of fishing rod is used, as illustrated in the drawing, the usual finger grip '76 may be extended downwardly through the wire 46 of the trigger mechanism 48 when the fishing rod handle is inserted in the tube 22, which will tend to maintain the reel 78 in the proper position for operation by a fisherman.

Operation The operationof the present fishing rod holder, when using the trigger mechanism 48, is illustrated in Fig. '1. When the holder is not in:use,athe tube 22 will be extended as illustrated by the dashed lines,- with the spring 32 holding the rear end of the tube '22 down, and with the forward portion of the tube 22 being in contact with the top of the support member 6. The fisherman will normally cast his bait (not shown) which is connected to the outer end of the fishing line 80 intothe water the desired distance. The handle portion 72 ofthe fishing rod 74 is then inserted in the forward end of the tube .22 in themanner illustrated in Fig. 1, with the finger grip 76 extending down through the wire 46 of the trigger mechanism 48. The forwardend 30 ofthe tube 22 is then forced downwardly against the action of the. spring 32 until the trigger mechanism 48 engages the stationary pin 66 by a seating of the pin 66 in the seat 59., .As the roller .60 is forced downwardly around the rear of'fthe pin 66, the spring characteristics of the 'wire 46 Will continually urge the roller 60 against the pin 66,- such that as soon as the roller 60 is moved below the pin 66, the housing 50 will spring forwardly until theroller 60 and the set screw 64 are in straddling relation on opposite sides of the pin 66. When the pin 66 is seated between the roller 60 and set screw 64, the forward end 300i the tube 22 will be held against upward movement, andthe fishing rod holder will be in a cocked position. Thefisherman can then reel-in theline 86 until the line 80 is taut to transmit any movementof the. bait to the fishing rod 74. It will besunderstood that'when the'tube 22 is pivoted counter-clockwise (when viewed as in Fig. 1) the shaft 24 will be turned in the apertures 26. When the holder is in a cocked position, as shown in the full'lines in Fig. 1, thefisherman can leave the holder andfishing rod 74 andattend to other business.

When a fish takes the bait, the outer end of the rod 74 will be forced downwardly an unpredictable amount,

depending upon the amount of pull exerted on the line 80 by the fish. A downward force on the outer'end'of the fishing rod 74 will apply a downward force on "the outer end of the trigger actuating lever formed by the wire 46. This force on the wire 46 will tend to pivot the housing 50 of the trigger mechanism 48 counterclockwise and move the roller 60 rearwardly under the pin 66. When sufiicient force is applied on the wire 46, the roller 60 is forced slightly down and rearwardly around the pin 66 to unseat the pin 66 from the seat 59. The spring 32 will then pivot the tube 22 and fishingrod 74 clockwise with a substantial force. The tube 22' is therefore moved to the dashed line position shown in -Fig. l to provide a substantial pull on the line 80 which will hook the fish nibbling on the bait on the end'of the line 80. After the fish is hooked, the spring 32 'willallow pivoting movement of the tube 22 andfishing rod 74 as the fish continues to jerk on the line 80 to.playthe fish and normally-retain sufficient tension on theline 80 to prevent loss of the fish.

The amount of force required to be imposed'on the wire 46 to trip the trigger mechanism 48 when the trigger mechanism is in engagement: with the pin 66-will depend upon the position of the set screw 64; It will be .apparentthat the position of the set screw 64 will control the distance that the crown of the rollerfifi-extends above the pin 66. In other words, when the set screw-64 is substantially unthreaded from-the housing 50, the; pin66 will crown portion-of the roller '60 ger mechanism. Therefore, the fisherman merely needs to adjust the set screw 64 tocontr'ol the sensitivity of the trigger mechanism 48.

As illustrated in Fig. 4, the present holder may also be used to provide a different and somewhat less violent 'type of action for the fishing rod 74 than that previously described. As before, the tube 22 is normally positioned as illustrated by the dashed linesjwith the shaft 24 ex-'- tending through the apertures 26. ,In this use ofthe holder, the trigger mechanism 48jmay"be removed; As

previouslyjdescribed, the trigger mechanism is be; easily removed by pressing inwardly on the'opposite reaches of the wire 46 and movingthe end' portions '54 of the wire inwardly into the housing'50'of the trigger mechanism, such that the'wire 4 6; is disengagedfrom the apertures 44 in the tube flanges 42. I ,7

In this second type of operation, the fisherman casts his bait to the desired. location in the water, and then the handle portion 72 of therod is inserted in the forward end portion 39 of thetube 22. The fisherman then lifts upwardly on the rear end portion 34 of the tube This upward 22 against the action of the spring 32. movement of the end 34 of the tube 22 will tend to pivot stood that changes may be 'rnents disclosed without departingtf-rom' the spirit and soope'pf the invention as defined in the following, claims.

i. i 1 .-'In a holder forlsupporting a fishing rod and swinging the fishing rod when the outer end of the rod is made in the precise embodipulled by a fish, a frame having vertically extending and horizontally spaced leg portions, each of said leg portions havingan aperture therethrough and a rectangularshaped slot therethrough communicating with the upper portion of the aperture, the aperture and slot in each leg portion being aligned with the aperture and slot in the other leg portion, a shaft journaled in said apertures,

' said shaft having a substantially square cross section and "'being'of a cross sectional size to slidingly fit in said slots and be heldjagainst turning movement by the edges of saidfsIots when extended through said slots, a tube rigidly the tube 22 counter-clockwise and move the end portions 7 of the shaft 24 into the slots 28 when the tube 22 has reached the position illustrated by the full lines in Fig.4.

It may be noted that in this position of the tube 22, the

rod 74 is extended upwardly at a slightly greater angle than in the operation ilustrated in Fig. 1. When the op posite end portions of the shaft 24 are engaged in the slots 28, the tube 22 will be cocked and prevented from pivoting movement by the edges of the slots 28 engaging the sides of the shaft 24.

When tension is applied on the line 80, the fishingrod f7 4 will tend to move downwardly to simultaneously urge the forward end 30 of the tube 22 downwardly. Any, substantial downward movement of the forward end 30 of the tube 22 will force the shaft24 downwardly out of the slots 28; whereupon the shaft 24 may rotate in the aperture 26 and the spring 32-swings the rear end 34 of the tube 22 downwardly as illustrated by the dashed lines in Fig. 4. As in the previous operation, the tube 22 pivots clockwise until the forward portion contacts the top portion of the support member 6. However, in this operation the tube 22 is pivoted with less violence than in the embodiment previously described. Also, the spring 32 will allow a pivoting movement of the tube 22 after the fish has been booked to play the fish as previously described. The tension of the spring 32 may be adjusted by adjusting the position of the bracket 36, such that substantially "any desired force may be applied on the rear end 34 of the tube 22 to control the force applied on the fishing line 80 when a fish takes the bait.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that the present invention provides a sturdily constructed fishing rod holder which will not be damaged by normal handling and storage. The holder may be cocked in two'different ways and suitably adjusted to provide a variety of reactions to a fishing rod held thereby. Furthermore, the

trigger mechanism may be easily adjusted by the fisherman to the desired sensitivity in a minimum of time without the use of special tools. The present holder may also be used with substantially any design or size of fishing rod; the holder is simple in construction and may be economicallymanufactured. i I I Changes may be made in the combination and arrangement of parts or elements as heretofore set forth in the specification and shown in the drawings, it being under 'seciired'to'the' shaft between said leg portionsand ex- "te'n'ded a right ang'le mrhe axis ofthe shaft, said tube being of a size to receive thehandle end of the fishing rod-'-i n one end thereof and support the, fishing rod substanti'allyin' alignment with the tu-b'e,and a tension spring anchored to the ,oppositeendof the tubeand to the frame below said apertures to continually urge said one end of'the tube upwardly. I v

2. A holder as defined in claim 1 characterized further .in that said slots extend from the respective apertures at an acute angle from the vertical ina direction to position the tube at an angle with said one end of the tube above said opposite end when the shaft israised into said slots.; I

3. A holder as defined in claim 1 characterized further to include astanchion secured to the lower end of the frame and having a lower pointed end for insertion in the ground to: support the frame. n

4. A holder as defined in claim 1 characterized further to include a pin carried by the frame in a horizontal position below said one end of the tube, and a trigger carried by said one end of the tube to engage said pin in when the tube is pivoted to move said one end of the tube downwardly a predetermined:distance, said trigger having a releasing lever thereon positioned to be actuated by movement of the fishing rod'to release said trigger from said pin. 1 v

5. In a holder for supporting a fishing rod, a tube having a forward end and a rear end and being of a size to telescopically receive the handle of the fishing rod in the forward end thereof, means for pivotally supporting the central portion of the tube for pivotal movement of the tube in a vertical ,plane a spring anchored between the rear end of the tube and said means for constantly urging the forward end of the tube upwardly, 'a trigger pin carried by said means under the forward end portion of the tube in -a position to extend horizontally, and a trigger pivotally secured to the forward end portion of the tube in a position to engage said pin when the forward end of the tube is moved downwardly to a point slightly above the rear end of the tube, said arm forming the forward edge of said seat to facilitate the release of the trigger when the. fishing rod is bent.

6. A holder as defined in claim 5 characterized further to include a set screw threaded through said other arm in a'position to' extend forwardly into the rear edge of lsaidrseat and limit the seating of said pin in said seat to I control the force required to be applied on said actuating lever for dis-engaging the trigger from said pin.

7. A holder as defined in claim 5 characterized further .dnthatsaid other arm is in the formof ahollow housing,

awandrsaid actuating lever is in: the form of a bent wire U: aying the, opposite end: portions extending i into said housing and its opposite ends extending through th e oppm beingextendeclintodsaid housing a sufficient distance to pivot said-housing when said actuating-lever isyivoted.

ingthe fishingrodlwhen the-outer encl ofttheirod is pulledv :10

8. In a holder for supporting a=fishing-rod-and swingby a, t-fish lc omprising asvei'tically-i extending zf rarne, said a'qto the shaftra nd extending at a-,-;r-ight angle-tothe :axis 5 of;.tl1e;- shamsaid gtube being "of .a; -siz e to ,receiveiztihe ha l d .o the fi in t od nw n ia d hereo iia :nupportithe fishing rod substantially: in alignment. :with tsitessides 'of:saidhousing:fonpivotally scouring- 11 6 g- .s ger to. the forward -end :portion of i thetube; saidwire the tube rand a; tension spring-anchored to the ,QPPOS tC .endof- 1 the- -vtube; and to the frame. below said gaperture to continually; urge; saidone end ofthetubei-upwa rdly.

fLtRefe 'e nees Citedinth'fileof this'pate'nt UNITED STATES PATENTS c frame. having an aperture extending horizontally there- :--693,071 1 .=.Rud(1. Feb. 11, 1902 rthyough and; agrectangularly-shaped slot-extendingthori- $2,564,840 G1enn V.Aug :21, 1951 zontallyitherethrough communicating with th -upper'por- 2,661,563 v, Adams Dec. 8, 1953 'tion of. said aperture, a1sha-ftvjournaledvintsaidyaperture '152,-7; 40,219 Harden -.--.Apr, 3, 1956 having a substantially squaret cross section and beingof -2;7 44,3 51 Smith .M2iy V8', 1956 :mcross.sectionalssizqtor slidjngly'fitin said slotiand be 2,804,277 Kinder Aug. 27; 1957 utheld against.turning:movement bywtheledgesofr said slot 1 2,821,041 2 Hughes ;Jan.,28;1958 when extendingqthrough said slot, a tube rigidly-secured 2';835,065 

